Rhapsody Streamnotes: June 13, 2015

Another month (plus one day) since last one, this one by far the
largest of the year so far, but actually the new records are way down:
59 (including new compilations) compared to 103 last month, and before
that: 101, 114, 97, 132. The difference is a mop-up operation in the
old music section, focusing on bands which placed records in a list
published by Spin of their
Top 300 Albums: 1985-2014.
What I've tried to do was not just to fill in grades for listed albums
I had missed but to pick up most of the previously unrated records of
those artists. In some cases those records were highly recommended by
others. In others I just felt like the context would help me out. And
for completeness sake, I list the previously rated albums in the Notes
below. (The file linked above has the complete list plus all of my grades
to date.)

That exercise was made possible by streaming from Rhapsody, and in
some cases was limited by it. I've only gotten a little more than half
way through the list, but thus far I've looked for the following records
but not found them:

Metallica: Master of Puppets (1986, Elektra)

Bikini Kill: The Singles (1998, Kill Rock Stars)

Guided by Voices: Bee Thousand (1994, Scat)

Dr. Dre: The Chronic (1992, Death Row)

Kate Bush: Hounds of Love (1985, EMI America)

Primal Scream: Screamadelica (1991, Sire)

The second half will have more records to look up. I was originally
missing 81 records from the list (27%). Thus far I've whittled that down
to 46 (15%). Not surprisingly, as Spin's list gets more obscure,
my coverage of it becomes a bit more scanty. Among the missing record
artists to come: Aaliyah, Aerosmith, Tori Amos, Animal Collective,
The Books, Boredoms, Neko Case, Cursive, The Deftones, The Field,
Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Green Day, Janet Jackson, Jimmy Eat World,
The Killers, Frankie Knuckles, Lil Wayne, Mastodon, Maxwell, M83,
The Microphones, Mobb Deep, My Chemical Romance, Nine Inch Nails,
Oasis, Orbital, Ride, Sigur Rós, Slint, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Sunny Day
Real Estate, Swervedriver, System of a Down, Teenage Fanclub, The
Unicorns, 2Pac, Wilco, Yo La Tengo. Most of those I've heard at least
one record by. Just evidently not the right one.

During the first two decades of the years in question, I only heard
records I bought, and I made a point of only trying to buy records I
would probably like. Rhapsody has allowed me to listen to more stuff
I wouldn't have bothered with before, and more often than not it proves
my instincts right. (Admittedly, I'm not a big alt/indie fan, and my
hip-hop proclivities run away from gangsta and toward underground, so
Spin has never been a very good predictor of my taste.) Indeed,
of the records I've filled in so far, the grade breakdown suggests that
I was mostly right to skip those records: A-: 4, B+(***): 4, B+(**): 6,
B+(*): 5, B: 13 (40.6%) -- that split suggests some of the latter should
have been graded lower, as probably would have happened had I bothered
to play them more than once. By the way, Christgau had two of my four A-
records at A- (both hip-hop), the other two at ** (but he had a different
Built to Spill at A-).

Even before the Spin piece, I started on this path by trying
to clean up a pair of long-owned but never-graded Bright Eyes CDs. And
at the last minute, I added a couple jazz albums while I was working
on my
Ornette
Coleman post. Not big news that the unheard Colemans made the
A-list, but I was surprised by two records with sideman appearances
(not something he ever did much of).

I'll keep chugging away on the Spin records next month, so
the new record count may remain depressed. On the other hand, I have
been skimming fairly efficiently, coming up with 12 A-list new releases
this month vs. 8 last month (albeit 15 in April and 14 in March). Some
of what I found this month was due to a premature mid-year best-of
from Spin. I expect we'll see more "so far" lists at midyear
approaches, so that should help identify prospects.

As for the new records, this is landing at a point when Robert
Christgau's weekly
Expert Witness column has
been suspended. I don't have any idea how to get the attention of
Medium/Cuepoint and apply any pressure to renew the column -- I
gather this isn't hopeless at this point, even if the odds aren't
great. If he stops publication, there will certainly be worthwhile
new albums that I (or pretty much anyone else) will never notice.
I figured I could illustrate that with stats from this column, but
it looks like he's only reviewed 2 of my 55 recent releases --
Cracker and Slutever, ones I was totally unaware of before he wrote
them up (and don't like as much as he does). Still, those are things
I wouldn't have heard of otherwise, and most month there are more of
them. It also seems likely that he would eventually weigh in on several
albums I like below: Bassekou Kouyate, Shamir, maybe Mbongwana Star
and Willie & Merle. I also wonder whether he'll find something
in Jason Derulo that eluded me. (And to a lesser extent, in all
respects, Young Thug.) On the other hand, he's only noticed Murs on
occasion (White Mandingos but no ¡Mursday!), and thus far he
hasn't noted Colin Stetson (who may be a jazz guy but that isn't his
fan base) at all.

Most of these are short notes/reviews based on streaming records
from Rhapsody. They are snap judgments based on one or two plays,
accumulated since my last post along these lines, back on May 12.
Past reviews and more information are available
here (6549 records).

All Included: Satan in Plain Clothes (2014 [2015],
Clean Feed): Scandinavian freebop group, one I file under saxophonist
Martin Küchen's name because he organizes lots of groups like this,
but Thomas Johansson's trumpet and Mats Äleklint's trombone are every
bit as prominent, and the bass-drums of Jon Rune Strøm and Tollef
Østvang keeps it all roiling -- so, yeah, all included. Just not
sorted out as well as Küchen's Angles groups.
B+(***) [cd]

Aimée Allen: Matter of Time (2013-14 [2015], Azuline):
Singer-songwriter, born and raised in Pittsburgh but moved to Paris
(some songs in French), fourth album, about half originals, half
standards, including a particularly nice "Corcovado" with Romero
Lubambo.
B+(**) [cd]

American Wrestlers: American Wrestlers (2014 [2015],
Fat Possum): Scottish singer-songwriter Gary McClure, formerly of
Working for a Nuclear Free City, moved to St. Louis and came up with
this understated but tuneful album.
B

Priscilla Badhwar: Mademoiselle (2014 [2015],
self-released, EP): Not clear where she comes from, but this
6-track (21:17) CD was recorded in Austin, TX, featuring French
tunes, some in French, some in English.
B+(**)

Blur: The Magic Whip (2015, Parlophone): First group
album since 2003's Think Tank, although Damon Albarn has been
busy in the meantime, with last year's solo album and various projects,
most famously Gorillaz, perhaps best 2002's Mali Music. I take
it the band has been periodically touring all along, and this album
came together when they found themselves with some free time in Hong
Kong. Less guitar and more pop than their 1990s albums; likable and
professional.
B+(**)

Randy Brecker/Bobby Shew/Jan Hasenöhrl: Trumpet Summit
Prague (2012 [2015], Summit): Three trumpet stars backed
by the Czech National Symphony Orchestra and St. Blaise's Big Band,
arranged and conducted by Vince Mendoza. The trumpets are fiery
enough, but the only tune that gets everyone swinging is "Caravan"
(so they play it twice).
B [cd]

Built to Spill: Untethered Moon (2015, Warner Brothers):
First album in six years, only their third since 2001, the new group
(aside from leader Doug Martsch) ever farther removed from the old
group, except inasmuch as it was only the guitar that really mattered.
Opens fiercely, then settles in for the long haul -- recapitulating
the band's career.
B+(*)

Cannibal Ox: Blade of the Ronin (2015, iHipHop):
Underground hip-hop duo, Vast Aire and Vordul Megilah, dropped their
debut album, produced by El-P, in 2001 (The Cold Vein), went
on to three or four solo albums each, and finally regrouped for their
second album here (mostly produced by Bill Cosmiq).
B+(***)

François Carrier/Michel Lambert: Io (2013 [2015], FMR):
Alto sax-drum duets, force the former to work harder which usually pays
off but leaves some rough edges.
B+(***) [cd]

François Carrier/Michel Lambert/Rafal Mazur: Unknowable
(2014 [2015], Not Two): Recorded live at Alchemia Jazz Klub in Krakow,
in most ways comparable to the alto saxophonist's many recent records,
with sidekick Lambert on drums, but Mazur's electric bass guitar rounds
out the sound, adding a resonance that is missing in the duo.
A- [cd]

Joan Chamorro & Andrea Motis: Feeling Good (2012
[2015], Whaling City Sound): Motis is a 20-year-old singer -- 16 when
this was recorded -- from Spain
who plays up the cuteness in her voice and works her way one fine
standard after another -- "Lover Man" twice, once with strings and
one without. Charmorro plays bass and tenor sax, leading a band
that grows or shrinks almost unnoticeably. Motis also contributes
some trumpet and alto sax.
B+(***) [cd]

Lorin Cohen: Home (2014 [2015], Origin): Bassist,
from Chicago, based in New York, first album. I guess we can call
the group a hornless septet, unless you want to count Yvonnick
Prene's harmonica; the rest of the line up is piano (Ryan Cohan),
vibes (Joe Locke), drums, steel pan, and percussion.
B [cd]

Colours Jazz Orchestra: Home Away From Home: Plays the Music
of Ayn Inserto (2013 [2015], Neu Klang): Maybe I should refile
this under Ayn Inserto, the conductor as well as composer. She studied
at New England Conservatory, most notably under the late Bob Brookmeyer,
and teaches and has her own big band in Boston. CJO is based in Italy,
where this was recorded. Some nice passages, especially when they mix
in that Latin tinge.
B+(*) [cd]

Cracker: Berkeley to Bakersfield (2014, 429 Records,
2CD): Former Camper Van Beethoven frontman David Lowery's country-rock
outfit, off-and-on since 1992, but I don't think I ever noted the
connection before. The Berkeley disc is straight-ahead rock, with
occasional barbs about billionaires. The Bakersfield one breaks out
the steel guitar and goes country, for better music if not politics.
B+(***)

Dan Deacon: Gliss Rifter (2015, Domino): Plays
synths and sings, his electronica not especially danceable, most
interesting when the beat gets jumbled and trash avalanches from
the shelves, but he has yet to marshall that into a real noise
aesthetic.
B+(*)

Jason Derulo: Everything Is 4 (2015, Warner Brothers):
I liked his 2014 album Talk Dirty as much as (nearly) anyone,
and expected more here. First couple tracks seemed plausible, but
then the first guest feat. (K. Michelle) tripped on a pet peeve then
got worse. More slumming with the stars doesn't help.
B+(*)

Deux Maisons: For Sale (2013 [2015], Clean Feed):
Avant-chamber group, two French (brothers Théo and Valentin Ceccaldi,
violin and cello respectively), two Portuguese (Luis Vicente on
trumpet and Marco Franco on drums). The strings scratch and itch,
the drums and trumpet help pass the time.
B+(**) [cd]

The Eye: The Future Will Be Repeated (2015, Ba Da Bing):
Experimental rock group from New Zealand, early albums (like 2005's
Black Ice) have minimal cover artwork, perhaps with drones
even simpler and starker than this minor klang.
B+(**)

Scott Hamilton: Scott Hamilton Plays Jule Styne
(2015, Blue Duchess): Tenor saxophonist, a retro-swing throwback
in the late '70s who's scarcely budged an inch since then, except
maybe to deepen his feel for ballads. Styne's tunes range from
"Sunday" in 1927 to "People" in 1964, a few you'll know instantly.
With Tim Ray on piano, Dave Zinno (bass) and Jim Gwin (drums),
plus a bit of guitar on one tune. Had I given this a casual spin,
I would have said "typically fine," but it's been stuck in my
changer for three days and I'll be sad when I have to move on.
A- [cd]

Fred Hersch Trio: Floating (2014, Palmetto): With
John Hébert on bass and Eric McPherson on piano, starts with a rip
roaring "You & the Night & the Music," ends with "If Ever
I Would Leave You" (Al Lerner) and "Let's Cool One" (Monk), the
filler originals dedicated to various contemporaries (as near as
I can tell), and all the more exquisite when he slows down. (Came
out last year and made a lot of lists.)
A- [dl]

Joe Hertenstein/Pascal Niggenkemper/Thomas Heberer: HNH2
(2013 [2015], Clean Feed): Drums, bass, and cornet respectively, the
latter with the more substantial career (credits back to 1987 including
some with ICP Orchestra, at least five albums under his own name), but
the drummer gets much larger type as well as first billing (compositions:
Hertenstein 4, Heberer 3, group 4). Nothing on the cover to distinguish
this title from 2010's HNH but the liner notes refer to HNH2.
Free jazz, not very flashy but engaging.
B+(**) [cd]

I Love Makonnen: Drink More Water 5 (2015, OVO Sound):
Rapper Makonnen Sheran, released a legit EP last year and hitched a big
single to Drake but returns here with a mixtape, his thirteenth since
2011. Not easy to find a streamable source of this, and I don't quite
know what to make of it -- least of all a video I snagged with lots of
drugs and exploding heads. Probably meant to be funny.
B+(**) [dl]

Christoph Irniger Trio: Gowanus Canal (2012 [2013],
Intakt): Swiss tenor saxophonist, trio with Raffaele Bossard on bass
and Ziv Ravitz on drums. They play free jazz, but mostly at a moderate
pace you can follow, logic you can appreciate, and none of that screech
or yowl.
B+(***)

Christoph Irniger Pilgrim: Italian Circus Story
(2014, Intakt): Quintet, the leader's tenor sax still the only horn
with Stefan Aeby on piano and Dave Gisler on guitar -- Aeby gets a
lot of space.
B+(**)

The Knocks: So Classic (2015, Big Beat, EP): NY duo,
Ben "B-Roc" Ruttner and James "JPatt" Patterson aim for dance pop,
with singles back to 2010 (including one called "Classic" dropped in
here in two mixes) and an album in the works. Five tracks, 20:54.
B+(*)

Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba: Ba Power (2015,
Glitterbeat): Ngoni player from Mali, his group featuring his wife,
powerful singer Amy Sacko. Broke out a bit with 2013's Jama Ko,
and this is comparably intense.
A-

Brian Landrus Trio: The Deep Below (2014 [2015],
BlueLand/Palmetto): Usually a baritone saxophonist, has at least
thre previous records, offers a tour of the deeper single reeds --
six cuts on bari, five on bass clarinet, two on bass flute, one
with bass sax. Lonnie Plaxico gets some bass spots too. Billy
Hart is the drummer on an album that is not only deep but softly
understated.
B+(***) [cd]

Deborah Latz: Sur L'Instant (2013 [2015], June Moon):
Standards singer, also acts, based in New York but recorded this third
album in Paris, backed by piano (Alain Jean-Marie) and bass (Gilles
Naturel).
B+(**) [cd]

Ingrid Laubrock Anti-House: Roulette of the Cradle
(2014 [2015], Intakt): Tenor (and soprano) saxophonist, from Germany,
adopted this group name from a 2010 album, and you can see why she
wants to keep the group going: Mary Halvorson (guitar), Kris Davis
(piano), John Hébert (bass), and Tom Rainey (drums), joined on two
tracks by Oscar Noriega (clarinet). Davis and, especially, Halvorson
enjoy some remarkable runs here.
B+(***) [cd]

Major Lazer: Peace Is the Mission (2015, Mad Decent):
Dancehall project of hip-hop producer Diplo, originally with British
house DJ Switch (Dave Taylor), although Diplo has a new crew of
collaborators here, plus adds featured vocalists on most cuts.
B+(*)

Mbongwana Star: From Kinshasa (2015, World Circuit):
From Congo, led by two musicians (Coco Ngambali, Theo Nsituruidi)
from Staff Benda Bilili, at first seem to fall short of the classic
soukous romps, but a ballad (of all things) convinced me they are
for real, and they pick up the pace when Konono No. 1 drop in to
resuscitate the beat, a bit of thumb piano that sweetens the guitar.
A-

The Gary McFarland Legacy Ensemble: Circulation: The Music
of Gary McFarland (2015, Planet Arts): McFarland (1933-71)
played vibraphone, but is probably best remembered (when at all)
as a composer and associate of Bill Evans and Bob Brookmeyer.
Drummer Michael Benedict directed this quintet, with Joe Locke
(vibes), Sharel Cassity (sax), Bruce Barth (piano), and Mike
Lawrence (bass), as they skip through eleven McFarland pieces.
Mostly breakneck bop, the leaders get a terrific workout --
most impressively Locke, his best performance in a long time.
A- [cd]

Murs: Have a Nice Life (2015, Strange Music):
Underground rapper Nick Carter, ninth album since 1997, although
lately he's been most impressive on side projects, like White
Mandingos' The Ghetto Is Tryna Kill Me and ¡Mursday!
(with ¡Mayday!). Rapid-fire raps run rings around the ups and
downs of ghetto life, the usual topics but not the usual take.
A-

Willie Nelson/Merle Haggard: Django and Jimmie
(2015, Legacy): Reinhardt and Rodgers on the tribute, adapted
but not penned by the leaders, and not exactly proven here or
elsewhere, though they're not the sort of fools not to be fans.
Another tune written for them is "It's All Going to Pot," which
starts like a Haggard rant but winds up in Nelsonland. Haggard
does claim four credits, including a "Swinging Doors" remake
and a yarn about Johnny Cash, while Nelson shares four with
Buddy Cannon, including a plug for "Alice in Hulaland." The
other cover you know is from Bob Dylan, but don't give it a
second thought.
A-

Pixies: Indie Cindy (2014, Pixiesmusic): Band
reformed after a 23-year break, evidently a better brand than
Frank Black and the Catholics, reuniting with Joey Santiago
(guitar) and Dave Lovering (drums) but not Kim Deal (bass).
Album is actually a compilation of three EPs, a strategy that
diffused the reunion's impact.
B

Jeff Richman: Hotwire (2015, Nefer): Guitarist, more
than a dozen albums since 1986. Credits are broken out cut-by-cut,
but most pieces feature Jimmy Haslip (bass, producer), Vinnie Colaiuta
(drums), and George Whitty (keybs), with guitarist Mike Stern present
on a couple cuts -- only two cuts have horn bits. That all points back
to '80s-vintage fusion, with hot guitar in the lead.
B+(*) [cd]

Shamir: Ratchet (2015, XL): First name, last name
Bailey, twenty years old, dropped an EP last year that lots of critics
liked, returns with debut LP this year. Sings like a girl without
overdoing it, beats are understated, the whole finish leans toward
matte so nothing blows you away, but it's still sneaky catchy.
A-

Slutever: Almost Famous (2015, self-released, EP):
Philadelphia-born, Los Angeles-based, two women (nameless on their
website but reportedly Rachel Gagliardi and Nicole Snyder), eighth
release on Bandcamp but that includes a digital track, a "cassingle,"
a 7-inch with two songs, 4- and 6-song EPs, an 8-track Demos.
This 6-track, 15:51 EP supposedly shows their bigger sound and more
accomplished songcraft, and it sort of does.
B+(**) [bc]

Colin Stetson/Sarah Neufeld: Never Were the Way She Was
(2015, Constellation): Saxophone-violin duets, with Stetson's saxes on
the low end (tenor and bass sax, and contrabass clarinet) and probably
responsible for some evident percussion, while Neufeld is also credited
with voice (possibly processed, no clear lyrics). All live, no overdubs
(something they're proud of, partly because it isn't obvious). Nominally
jazz although Stetson's distribution and following slops over into rock
and the duo have some soundtrack background.
A-

Davide Tammaro: Ghosts (2014 [2015], self-released):
Guitarist, from Naples in Italy but a Berklee grad based in New York,
first album. With alto sax, various keybs, bass, and drums, pleasant
groove without pushing unpleasant fusion buttons.
B [cd]

Henry Threadgill Zooid: In for a Penny, In for a Pound
(2014 [2015], Pi, 2CD): Four album with this group (more or less);
Jose Davila (trombone, tuba), Liberty Ellman (guitar), Christopher
Hoffman (cello), Elliot Humberto Kavee (drums). Threadgill seems
to play less flute this time (or more bass flute), but it's the
alto sax you notice, rotating against Davila's low notes, the
strings swirling around. He called an earlier band Very Very Circus,
but he's rarely juggled this adroitly. Might have squeezed the music
onto a single disc (40:14, 38:58).
A- [cd]

U2: Songs of Innocence (2014, Interscope): First album
in five years, backed by producers like Danger Mouse who never sounded
like this elsewhere and won't again. Unlike the 1990's albums (below),
this captures the grand sound of the band -- i.e., what's always made
them rather annoying.
B

Universal Indians w/Joe McPhee: Skullduggery (2014
[2015], Clean Feed): Seems like McPhee will play with anyone, a
trait which has helped maked him such an inspiration to free jazz
musicians around the world. He plays pocket trumpet and various
saxes in this live recording from Belgium, with John Dikeman on
more saxes, Jon Rune Strøm on bass, and Tollef Østvang on drums
(the rhythm section from All Included).
B+(***) [cd]

Frank Vignola & Vinny Raniolo: Swing Zing! (2015,
FV): Guitarists, Vignola a specialist at swinging standards, Raniolo
previously unknown to me but has an album and acted in Boardwalk
Empire. Guests include guitarists Bucky Pizzarelli, Gene Bertoncini,
and Julian Lage -- the first two did much to invent Vignola's style,
enough for a PBS special on Four Generations of Guitars -- and
singer Audra Mariel.
B+(**) [cd]

Kamasi Washington: The Epic (2015, Brainfeeder, 3CD):
Saxophonist, has quite a few side credits since 2001, including groups
Young Jazz Giants and Throttle Elevator Music, plus work in Gerald
Wilson's big band, with Phil Ranelin, also with Flying Lotus (who
produces here) and Kendrick Lamar. His debut album is a monster, not
just in length but in the 10-piece funk band, 32-piece orchestra, and
20-voice choir he blows over, through, and up. Still, I find the masses
turn anonymous, even the singers (and there's much too much of that).
He finds firmer ground when the third disc goes historical, with a
sharp take on "Cherokee," some first-rate trumpet, and a Malcolm X
sample.
B+(**)

Young Thug: Barter 6 (2015, 300/Atlantic): Originally
named Carter 6 in a cheap stab at grabbing some Lil Wayne biz,
still hard to take him seriously but perhaps it's better that way.
B+(**)

Recent Reissues, Compilations, Vault Discoveries

The Ornette Coleman Quartet: The 1987 Hamburg Concert
(1987 [2011], Domino, 2CD): On the alto saxophonist's superb 1987
then-and-now album, In All Languages, these guys were billed
as "The Original Quartet" -- Don Cherry (cornet), Charlie Haden (bass),
and Billy Higgins (drums) -- as opposed to his new-fangled Prime Time
fusion group. Live, the old guys play classics, which sound as tricky
then (and now) as they did when they knocked the jazz world on its
ear back in 1959.
A-

Willi Williams: Unification: From Channel One to King Tubby's
(1979 [2014], Shanachie): A minor roots rasta singer, had a 1978 hit
called "Armagideon Time" that was covered by the Clash. This set was
recorded a year later with Yabby You, so predictably it's a bit softer
than the era's classics but still sounds terrific.
A-

Yabby You: Dread Prophecy: The Strange and Wonderful Story
of Yabby You (1972-85 [2015], Shanachie, 3CD): Vivian Jackson,
left home at age 12 and was hospitalized for malnutrition at 17,
leaving him with crippling arthritis but eventually he found Jah
and King Tubby, had a signature hit in 1972 called "Conquering Lion,"
and recorded a good deal of dub in the following decade-plus, more
sporadically until his death in 2010. Shanachie took an interest
and released two albums -- One Love, One Heart (1983) and
Fleeing From the City (1985) -- and now they've assembled
this memorial box. To call the first disc "Classics" is a stretch
but they sketch out his minor hits, only slightly better known
(and better) than the "Rarities" on the third disc. Better still
is the middle disc, "The Many Moods of Yabby You," including some
of his production work. Reportedly comes with a 30-page booklet
which may make the difference.
B+(***)

Old Music

Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works 85-92 (1992,
R&S): Presented like a compilation, as far as I can tell all
the pieces were initially released on the album. The alias belongs
to Richard D. James, from Ireland, his debut album an elegent set
of simple synth pieces, less quiet than Eno's early ambient, and
not without a few disruptive squiggles.
B+(***)

Aphex Twin: I Care Because You Do (1990-94 [1995],
Sire): Skipping over a second (2CD) volume of Selected Ambient
Works, some EPs (later collected as Classics), and an
album as Polygon Window (Surfing on Sine Waves) we get to
his next (in some ways first) proper album. Mostly drum machine
loops with analog synth washes, nothing very ambient. Tempted
to dock it for the self-portrait cover, but there's something to
be said for the geek moving up front.
A-

Aphex Twin: Richard D. James Album (1996, Elektra):
For the cover, James swapped his crude self-portrait painting in
for a more menacing self-photo, perhaps to emphasize his transition
from analog synths to digital. The change produces faster beats
and some sharper sounds, but it also tempts him to work in some
processed voice vocals.
B+(***)

Beyoncé: B'Day (2006, Columbia): The breakout star
from Destiny's Child, second solo album although the intervening
group album gives you a chance to forget how bad the first was.
This starts out promising enough, but it seems inevitable she's
going to pull out something truly wretched (e.g., "Resentment").
B+(*)

Beyoncé: I Am . . . Sasha Fierce (2008, Music
World/Columbia, 2CD): Divide at the ellipsis to get the concept,
originally spread out over two discs to emphasize the contrast,
but the combined run-time only comes to 41:40, so later editions
crammed it all together, then tacked on a second disc of videos --
her real talent? I suppose the two-disc trick is worthwhile. The
second runs at dance tempos, but the first is deadly.
C+

Björk: Debut (1993, Elektra): Not really a novice
after three albums fronting Iceland's original pop-rock group, the
Sugarcubes, though even earlier she appeared in a punk band called
Spit and Snot and in a jazz fusion group called Exodus. Has an art
streak that threatens to get the best of her, but only "The Anchor
Song" risks her beat, which "Violently Happy" raised.
B+(*)

Björk: Post (1995, Elektra): Her electropop shows
some promise, but she also has this penchant for arty dramaturgy
which can (and in the future will) spoil an album.
B

Björk: Greatest Hits (1993-2001 [2002], Elektra):
I never regarded her as a singles artist, just a wildly slapdash
album conceptualizer, so I'm impressed by how consistently strong
the rhythm tracks are at least two-thirds of the way through this,
so much so I'm prepared to accept her warblings without trying to
make sense of them.
B+(***)

Mary J. Blige: What's the 411? (1992, Uptown/MCA):
Debut album, about 21 at the time, has a strong voice but rather
than going all diva on us, exec. producer Puff Daddy goes for a
hip-hop beat and framework.
B+(**)

Mary J. Blige: No More Drama (2001, MCA): Long,
ran 76:55 in its original edition, before being reshuffled and
reissued in 2002 with a different cover. She knocks out eighteen
songs here, like some sort of assembly line, which means for once
she doesn't oversing them, or overwrite them.
B+(**)

Blur: Leisure (1991, SBK): First album by one of
the top British rock groups of the 1990s, the sort of group that
shows up repeatedly in UK all-time lists (along with Oasis and
Manic Street Preachers) but never in US lists (unlike Radiohead).
Guitar riffs remind me of the Kinks and the Jam. Songs don't.
B

Blur: Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993, SBK): After
an unsuccessful US tour, the band doubled down on their Britishness,
so while the music stayed upbeat the lyrics slumped, and the music
occasionally turned circusy.
B-

Blur: 13 (1999, Virgin): Hit and miss, which I
guess is the definition of a singles band.
B+(**)

Bright Eyes: A Collection of Songs Written and Recorded
1995-1997 (1995-97 [1998], Saddle Creek): I.e., roughly
from when Omaha native Conor Oberst was 15-17, a period when he
led a group called Commander Venus but this starts out solo vocal
with guitar, adds occasional backing but not clear who does what.
He doesn't have an appealing voice, and much of this is crudely
done, but it feels way too grizzled to be labeled juvenilia.
B+(*)

Bright Eyes: Letting Off the Happiness (1997-98 [1998],
Saddle Creek): Second album, first conceived as such, figure it as more
of a band album in that Oberst aims for a coherent sound -- still lo-fi,
masking his folkie voice with rough-hewn guitar and bass. Final piece
runs 25:46, mostly static drone with too little payback at the end.
B

Bright Eyes: Fevers and Mirrors (1999 [2000], Saddle
Creek): For once I have detailed credits, which show they're not really
a band -- Mike Mogis adds something trivial to nearly every cut (piano,
guitar, vibes, pedal steel, lap dulcimer, hammer dulcimer, mandolin,
guiro, percussion, "atmosphere"; but drummer Joe Knapp only appears
on 7 (of 14) songs, and a half-dozen others come and go. Includes a
prying radio interview, where he reveals, "I want people to feel sorry
for me." Sometimes it's hard to get what you want, and vice versa.
B+(*)

Bright Eyes: Lifted or the Story Is in the Soil, Keep Your
Ear to the Ground (2002, Saddle Creek): This is where Oberst
started to get noticed. Starts with a grumble then an exaggerated
Dylanish grunt, then seems to evolve before your ears, picking up
polish if not quite hooks, and turning into someone you might want
to spend some time with. Still only 22, but he's starting to get hold
of his voice.
B+(**) [cd]

Bright Eyes: I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning (2005, Saddle
Creek): Conor Oberst has finally worked out all the kinks in his voice
and songcraft, in the process shedding his connections to folk music --
economic as much as any other -- yet remains as odd as ever, serenading
a woman in a crashing airplane, favoring the winning side in senseless
wars, and so forth.
B+(***) [cd]

Broken Social Scene: You Forgot It in People (2002,
Arts & Crafts): Canadian alt/indie group led by Kevin Drew,
second album, stretches out with some impressive guitar grind
but can still back off for a ballad.
B+(***)

Broken Social Scene: Broken Social Scene (2005,
Arts & Crafts): Third album, Brendan Canning shares all song
credits with Kevin Drew. Again they push the guitar hard before
opening up into something odder.
B+(**)

Built to Spill: Ultimate Alternative Wavers (1992,
C/Z): Alt/indie band from Boise, first album, murky as you'd expect
but sometimes the thrash turns into rave.
B+(***)

Built to Spill: There's Nothing Wrong With Love (1994,
Up): Second album, shows solid advances in songwriting and poise,
so the guitar is sparser, but used to greater effect.
A-

Built to Spill: Keep It Like a Secret (1999, Warner
Brothers): Fourth studio album, first to chart (120 US), the sort of
group -- guitar-heavy '90s alt/indie -- I tend to find boring, but
this is eminently listenable, maybe even substantial.
A-

Built to Spill: Ancient Melodies of the Future (2001,
Warner Brothers): What happens when a group that has always gotten
along by framing everything with its distinctive guitar sound tries
to change its focus, here to melody -- nice enough, as far as it goes.
B

Built to Spill: You in Reverse (2006, Warner Brothers):
Continues in the previous album's "melodic" vein, but with more muscle,
a shift you were probably hoping for.
B+(**)

Built to Spill: There Is No Enemy (2009, Warner Brothers):
The band is clearly slowing down, really just Doug Martsch's vehicle,
and he's doing things he's done many times before, including stellar
guitar solos.
B+(*)

Kate Bush: The Kick Inside (1978, EMI America): Not
quite 20 for her debut, her warbly voice doesn't seem like much of
an asset but does the trick on "Wuthering Heights."
B+(**)

Kate Bush: Lionheart (1978, EMI America): Just 20,
no doubt a hero for bookish young girls, her increasingly sophisticated
music reminds me first of opera -- the arena where her soprano is most
abused, but I note a comic twist both to her voice and to the shifting
melodies. Not sure that it's intentional, but it helps cut the bombast.
A very ambitious young lady, and talented enough she's worth indulging.
B+(**)

Kate Bush: Never for Ever (1980, EMI America): Third
album, adds a couple singles for her best-of, otherwise more professional
chops, less inspired innovation.
B+(*)

Kate Bush: The Dreaming (1982, EMI America): After
two plays I still have no idea. I do know that she was sole producer
this time, and that she threw the kitchen sink into the mix -- dozens
of exotic instruments, and I noted Danny Thompson and Eberhard Weber
among the bassists. [Also that Spin's actual pick, 1985's
Hounds of Love, isn't on Rhapsody.]
B

Ornette Coleman: Twins (1959-61 [1971], Atlantic):
A little something Atlantic cobbled together out of scraps a decade
after the fact: outtakes from most of the album sessions, including
the 16:56 first take of "Free Jazz" -- the five cuts are spread out
on as many discs in Rhino's session-oriented 6-CD Beauty Is a Rare
Thing box (which with its booklet is the one you probably want,
and not prohibitively expensive). The comp was reissued in 1982 with
a different cover, reverted to the original cover for a 2005 digital
release by Rhino, then was picked up by Water for a 2008 CD. The opener
gives you a good sense of the double quartet album, and there's no
obvious reason the rest was shelved -- in fact, the quartet sides
are so good this could be a box sampler.
A-

The Cure: Three Imaginary Boys (1979, Fiction): First
album from Robert Smith's long-lived band which later on became an icon
of art school intellectualism. At this point they were fashionably new
wave, with echoes of Wire on occasion and Joe Jackson more often --
although more strained.
B+(*)

The Cure: The Head on the Door (1985, Elektra):
Sixth studio album -- 1980's Boys Don't Cry isn't on
Rhapsody, and the rest are so poorly regarded I didn't see any
need to bother. But this starts a run of 1985-89 albums that do
have a critical rep (and substantial sales), and it's easy enough
to see why. Robert Smith has gained flexibility and range as a
singer, and the music sports new looks -- even if they're as
derivative as his early new wave, he's kept his models up to date.
B+(*)

The Cure: Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me (1987, Elektra):
Originally 2-LP, squeezed onto a single CD by droping one song
(restored in the 2006 reissue). The extra length lets them air out
a more expansive sound, more suited to the larger venues their
newfound popularity opened up. Louder, but not necessarily better.
B

The Cure: Disintegration (1989, Elektra): The band
gets bigger, as does its music, which by contrast makes the personal
impression of Smith that much smaller, not to mention less interesting.
B

Daft Punk: Homework (1993-96 [1997], Virgin): French
electronica duo, big enough they moved into arenas and talented enough
to make their arena-pomped sound work, at least on Alive 2007
(if not the more relevant here Alive 1997). Still, this debut
seems rather sketchy and gamey.
B

Depeche Mode: Speak & Spell (1981, Sire): Debut
album by British synthpop group, a sizable hit (gold, peak 10) in
the UK, barely grazed the US charts (192), a pattern which would
gradually improve as they got their videos on MTV, but their first
US top-10 album was nine years later. Aside from the last cut, the
vocals seem distant, buried under unimpressive beats, none of which
prepare you for the "Schizo Remix" of their third single, "Just Can't
Get Enough."
B

Depeche Mode: A Broken Frame (1982, Sire): Second
album, where Martin Gore (keyboards) takes over songwriting duties
from departed Vince Clarke (keyboards, everyone but lead singer
Dave Gahan plays keyboards) -- not that the songs offer much to
brag about. Sound is more consistent, but less catchy.
B-

Depeche Mode: Construction Time Again (1983, Sire):
Third album, Alan Wilder (keyboards, of course) joins and writes two
songs, Martin Gore the rest. Some evidence of an evolving political
consciousness ("the grabbing hands grab all they can").
B

Depeche Mode: Some Great Reward (1984, Sire): The
dour vocals seem typical of British bands of the period -- Ian Curtis
proved more prophetic than Johnny Rotten, at least of the Thatcher
era -- but the extra blips on the keyboards offer small delights,
and when they sparkle enough you get a single.
B+(*)

Depeche Mode: Catching Up With Depeche Mode (1980-85
[1985], Sire): US alternative to the UK-released Singles 81-85,
dropping four songs (notably "People Are People" -- their highest
charting pop single, 4 UK, 13 US) while picking up two B-sides. Their
albums suggest they may be a singles band, but roll them up and they
sound more like a decent but forgettable album.
B+(**)

Depeche Mode: Black Celebration (1986, Sire): Dark
gloom as a formal aesthetic, even though the keybs would be happier
shining up dance grooves.
B

Depeche Mode: Violator (1990, Sire/Reprise): Their
biggest album to date, the scale coming through in the music even
if it isn't clear that it signifies anything.
B

Depeche Mode: Songs of Faith and Devotion (1993,
Sire/Reprise): Their only album to top the charts in US as well as
UK, followed by a 14-month "Devotional Tour" which ended without
Alan Wilder. Heavier, denser, dumber too.
B-

Destiny's Child: The Writing's on the Wall (1999,
Columbia): Second album, still four faces on the cover although
they're starting to separate out, with LeToya Luckett and LaTavia
Roberson soon to split. This is where they blew up, with two number
one singles and the album selling over six million copies. Very
professional but not much to get excited about. A personal turn
off was the a cappella "Amazing Grace" at the end.
B+(**)

Destiny's Child: Survivor (2001, Columbia): Down to
three, with Beyoncé clearly first among unequals. The title cut always
struck me as a cliché, but it's the catchiest single here, even if
"Bootylicious" sounds more appetizing.
B+(**)

J Dilla: Donuts (2006, Stones Throw): Detroit hip-hop
producer James Yancey, also recorded as Jay Dee, released his best-known
album on his 32nd birthday then died three days later, suffering from
the blood disease TTP. This is a pastiche, 31 short pieces, most built
around a single loping beat with sampled vocal bits that never turn
personal.
B

Dinosaur Jr.: You're Living All Over Me (1987, SST):
Second album, group led by J. Mascis, who has kept it going although
he's recorded more solo than group albums since 1996. The singer's
drawl could (and eventually would) imply folkiness, but at this point
they're still young, and all they really want is to let the guitar(s)
squeal.
B+(**)

The Flaming Lips: The Soft Bulletin (1999, Warner
Brothers): Neo-psychedelia from Oklahoma City, the group led by Wayne
Coyne already had eight albums I haven't heard before this one got
dubbed "the Pet Sounds of the 1990s" -- presumably for the
lush melodies, thick vocal harmonies, and shimmering synths, although
I could just as well aver kinship to Frank Zappa, as artists who make
farce without being particularly funny.
B

The Flaming Lips: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
(2002, Warner Brothers): Robot synths and comic characters mixed
in with a few things that are nicely shaped as songs.
B+(***)

Rolf Kühn & Friends: Affairs (1997 [1998],
Intuition): German clarinetist, started recording in 1957, called
in a lot of favors for his front cover: Randy Brecker, Ornette
Coleman, Eddie Daniels, Buddy DeFranco, Wolfgang Haffner, Dieter
Ilg, Dave Liebman, Chuck Loeb, Albert Mangelsdorff -- Coleman
and Mangelsdorff only appear on one track each (duets with Kühn),
Liebman and Brecker two (the latter on a track called "There Is a
Mingus Amonk Us"). But the clarinet reigns, especially when all
three join together for "Just Friends" and "Three Bopeteers."
A-

John Lewis: Jazz Abstractions (1960, Atlantic):
Fuller title: John Lewis Presents Contemporary Music 1: Jazz
Abstractions: Compositions by Gunther Schuller & Jim Hall.
Not clear what MJQ pianist Lewis is doing here, other than that he
seems to have cornered the market on Third Stream, a phrase that
Schuller invented to describe a jazz-classical fusion. The actual
pianist here is Bill Evans, but the strings are more prominent
(violin-viola-cello, also George Duvivier and Scott LaFaro on
bass and Hall on guitar), the drums supplemented by Eddie Costa's
vibes, and the horn section is limited to Eric Dolphy and Ornette
Coleman. The first cut is very avant for the period. The others
explore their abstractions in various ways, each fascinating in
its own way, all expertly done.
A-

Nas: Illmatic (1994, Columbia): Legendary debut album
from Nasir Jones, son of jazz/blues guitarist Olu Dara, it doesn't
really grab you from the first spin but grows on you, the beats
subtle but richly textured, a rapper who has something to say and
the flow to put it over.
A-

Neutral Milk Hotel: On Avery Island (1995 [1996],
Merge): This is singer-songwriter Jeff Mangum's debut, produced by
Robert Schneider of Apples in Stereo, the latter playing organ and
fuzz bass, with a few guest spots for accordion, violin, flute, and
trombone -- folkie lo-fi with a dash of exotica.
B

Neutral Milk Hotel: In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
(1998, Merge): Jeff Mangum's second album, got off to a rocky start
but gradually built a substantial cult following. Mangum's voice is
rough, his strumming emphatic, a harshness that grates at first then
picks up speed and threatens to cohere into an irresistible force.
B+(**)

Pixies: Come On Pilgrim (1987, 4AD, EP): Boston
alt/indie group led by a guy known as Black Francis, cut a demo
tape before signing, roughly half of which (eight songs, 20:28)
were quickly dumped onto this mini-LP (originally a cassette).
I never really got into them for reasons I never bothered to
figure out, but their sonic appeal was clear even here, their
penchant for slipping in and out of time something that can now
been seen as anticipating 1990's groups like Pavement. The rest
of the demo tape was released in 2002 as Pixies, but I
haven't heard it.
B+(*)

Pixies: Surfer Rosa (1988, 4AD/Elektra): Official
first album. Again, the appeal is primarily sonic, fancy guitar riffs
over an urgent beat with little else especially clear. One thing that
throws me is a short rant called "You F*ckin' Die" that doesn't seem
to be on the original album.
B+(*)

Primal Scream: XTRMNTR (2000, Astralwerks): Scottish
group, best known for their third album, Screamadelica (1991,
not on Rhapsody). Dense, industrial-grade guitar-bass with synth washes,
often danceable. One might worry about lyrics like "Swastika Eyes,"
but not the music.
A-

Radiohead: Pablo Honey (1993, Capitol): First album
from one of the biggest groups to emerge in the 1990s. One of the
first lyrics I noticed was "I want to be Jim Morrison" -- OK, but
at this point this is more of a guitar band, and more impressive for
that.
B+(**)

Radiohead: The Bends (1995, Capitol): Second album,
on most songs the guitar gives way to sweet, lonely vocals, so it's
good to bump into something like "My Iron Lung" where you get some
actual thrash.
B

Radiohead: Hail to the Thief (2003, Capitol): Sixth
studio album, runs 14 songs, 56:31, a lot to focus on for an album
that doesn't focus on much of anything.
B+(*)

Slayer: Reign in Blood (1986, Def American): Speed
(and/or thrash) metal group, fast anyway, wish I could quantify that
for you but not one of my skills. Words are probably full of shit,
but they're fast too, no point pondering. I enjoyed the first wave
of bands dubbed metal -- roughly Led Zeppelin to Blue Oyster Cult --
but something happened in the early 1980s that turned metal into a
cult music and made it incomprehensible to me, and damn annoying as
well. Looking at this band's pics, I'd guess that was Kiss, a group
that was always a joke but also provided a seed for young bands that
wanted to push their logic into ever more extreme directions. Slayer,
I suppose, is transitional, which makes this rather tolerable. (Or
maybe it's just Rick Rubin producing?)
B

Slutever: Sorry I'm Not Sorry (2010, self-released,
EP): First recording, notes that "Rachel & Nicole both play guitar,
drum, and sing" and that it was "recorded in a bathroom and hot,
sweaty room, Philadelphia" and "overdubbed in bedrooms, Seattle and
Los Angeles." Six songs, 12:22, sound so tinny I can't make out a
word.
B

Slutever: Slutever Demos (2013, self-released, EP):
At eight tracks, 27:53, their most substantial effort ever but
they're not the sort who'd risk their no-long-player strategy by
packing on too much weight. Two songs they later released as a
single ("1994/Spit") verify that these are indeed demos, even if
they are much better recorded than their first EP.
B+(*) [bc]

Smashing Pumpkins: Gish (1991, Caroline):
A rather proggish band that emerged on the artier end of the 1990s
grunge spectrum, led by Billy Corgan, who eventually became the
only constant through their discography. First album, demonstrated
their ability to fill a stage.
B

Smashing Pumpkins: Siamese Dream (1993, Virgin):
All Christgau had to say: "hooked on sonics." I'm afraid I didn't
even get that much, although "Sweet Sweat" does sound better after
the sonic freak-out than it would have on its own.
B

Smashing Pumpkins: Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
(1993, Virgin, 2CD): A sprawling 28-track album, 121:39 on 2-CD, longer
still on triple (or quadruple) vinyl, with an "extended edition" stretched
to 351:19, nearly six hours. There is clearly merit both in the harder and
softer tracks, but figuring out what/when/where is a task bound to take a
lot more effort than I feel up to.
B

The Smiths: The Smiths (1984, Sire): Big group in
England during the 1980s, one I didn't notice until they split in
1987. The group's appeal depended on how you reacted to singer
Morrissey -- Slant described him as "a mordant, sexually
frustrated disciple of Oscar Wilde who loved punk but crooned like
a malfunctioning Sinatra" -- but much of the early hype revolved
around guitarist-cowriter Johnny Marr, unfathomably regarded as
some kind of genius. Both seem fairly ordinary here.
B+(*)

The Smiths: Hatful of Hollow (1983-84 [1993],
Sire): A compilation of early singles and several John Peel
sessions, not clear how much of it predates the group's first
album, appeared in UK in 1984 to much success but was held
back in the US for nine years (with some tracks appearing on
the 1987 US compilation Louder Than Bombs). The first
thing you notice is that it makes a much better case for Johnny
Marr the guitarist.
B+(***)

The Smiths: Meat Is Murder (1985, Sire): Second
studio album, self-produced, I find this rolls past me without
anything registering much, even the singer's perpetual whine.
Cover photo is from Vietnam, but as they say, "Barbarism Begins
at Home." But I think not with meat.
B

The Smiths: The Queen Is Dead (1986, Sire):
Spin picked this as the 5th greatest album of the last 30
years, or should I say slotted it between Daft Punk's Discovery
and Radiohead's OK Computer? Title cut definitely takes the
music to a new level, which makes much of the rest sound like filler.
B+(**)

The Smiths: The World Won't Listen (1984-86 [1993],
Sire): Guessing on the US release date -- this second odds and sods
collection appeared in the UK on Rough Trade in February 1987 and
promptly went into Sire's sausage machine to be turned into Louder
Than Bombs later that year. The singles mix adds some snap early
on, but they run short of material.
B

The Smiths: Strangeways, Here We Come (1987, Sire):
Fourth and last studio album -- Morrissey would move on to a solo
career without skipping a beat, while Johnny Marr pretty much vanished
(until a 2013-14 mini-comeback). Whatever tension existed between the
two is buried in their routine performances, the songs a little wordy
but that's the singer's trademark.
B

The Smiths: Rank (1986 [1988], Sire): Live best-of,
a handy contract filler once the group broke up. Not a group I have
any sentimental attachment to, but this seemed to pick up a little
when Morrissey introduced "Ask" ("latest single"), and I liked the
one they rocked out on.
B+(*)

The Smiths: Singles (1983-87 [1995], Reprise):
Eleven singles from the four albums (six in album versions), plus
seven more that were collected on compilations (six on Louder
Than Bombs). They don't strike me as an especially strong
singles band, but the selection is consistently tighter and
stronger than the source albums.
A-

The Smiths: The Sound of the Smiths (1983-87 [2008],
Reprise, 2CD): First disc adds five tunes to the 18-cut Singles,
and second disc adds more stuff -- mostly b-sides but also the title
cut and three other songs from The Queen Is Dead. I figure
that makes the first disc a slight improvement over Singles,
while the second just broadens the picture. Michael Tatum, who is
much more of a fan than I am, favors this option. He could be right,
but having slogged through all of this I'm still not sure this is
an essential, or even a very important, band.
A-

The Stone Roses: The Stone Roses (1989, Silvertone):
Manchester band, considered a very big deal in the UK when their
eponymous debut album dropped. I missed this one but bought and
liked their second and last from 1994 (admittedly one I scarcely
remember), so I was surprised to see how indifferently Byrds-ish
this one started out. Picks up a bit toward the end.
B+(*)

Jamaaladeen Tacuma: Jamaaladeen Tacuma's Coltrane
Configurations (2008 [2009], Jazzwerkstatt): Bass guitarist,
closely associated with Ornette Coleman during his Prime Time run.
Modelled on the Quartet, with Orrin Evans on piano, Tim Hutson on
drums, and Tony Kofi handling the tenor role with great aplomb on
alto sax. Starts with a 15:23 "India" and closes with a 11:05 "A
Love Supreme."
B+(***)

Tears for Fears: The Hurting (1983, Mercury):
British new wave/synthpop band, principally Roland Orzabal and
Curt Smith on guitar and bass, plus extra keyb/drum programming.
Debut went number 1 in UK charting three singles that aren't
immediately obvious but their cloistered drama grows on you.
B+(*)

Tears for Fears: Songs From the Big Chair (1985,
Mercury): A bigger hit, at least in the US, although only "Shout"
stands out, and the preponderance of slow songs undercuts both
the new wave grind and the synthpop bubble.
B

Tears for Fears: The Seeds of Love (1989, Mercury):
Third album, another bestseller (UK 1, US 8), but the only single
is a belabored Beatles rip ("Sowing the Seeds of Love"), and the
dramatic vocals elsewhere range from kitsch to sludge.
B-

TLC: CrazySexyCool (1994, La Face): Hip-hop era
R&B vocal trio (T-Boz, Chilli, Left Eye), cut three albums
before 2002 when the latter was killed in a car accident, sold
65 million albums and went bankrupt for their trouble. This is
their second, the big one, but I'm having trouble sifting the
hits from the filler (OK: "Waterfalls"; "Creep").
B+(**)

TLC: Fanmail (1999, La Face): A stronger album, I
think, which has as much to do with production values as anything
else -- less hip-hop, for instance, but better pop hooks.
B+(***)

A Tribe Called Quest: Midnight Marauders (1993, Jive):
Third album, beats soft and jazzed up a bit, several rappers floating
around the rhythm, one of those underground things that threatened to
break out, partly because they snuck so much tradition inside.
A-

A Tribe Called Quest: Beats, Rhymes and Life (1996,
Jive): Hard to distinguish this from its two fine predecessors, but
I find it a big lighter, airier, and don't deem that a minus.
A-

A Tribe Called Quest: The Love Movement (1998, Jive):
Fifth and final album -- Q-Tip moved on to release Amplified
the following year. They stay well within their limits.
B+(**)

U2: Achtung Baby (1991, Island): In the late 1970s I
made a point of tracking down everything Eno was associated with --
even the Portsmouth Synphonia albums -- so expected something more out
of this big Irish band than they ever delivered, only to give up before
their marginal prog move here. "One" at least is one of their better
songs.
B+(*)

U2: Zooropa (1993, Island): Several surprises here,
including receding vocals and electronic textures that finally suggest
producer Eno is having an effect -- still, don't believe the reviews
that regard this as EDM -- and a country song at the end ("The Wanderer")
that sounds like it was written for Johnny Cash, not least because Cash
guests on it.
B+(**)

U2: Pop (1997, Island): Post-Eno, the new producers
get a compelling pop thrash on occasion (e.g., "Moto") but then the
result sounds nothing at all like U2, and when it does it doesn't.
B+(*)

Weezer: Weezer (1994, DGC): Los Angeles band's first
album, one of those 1990s alt-rock groups that drove me to focus on
jazz, not that I paid this particular one enough notice to let them
annoy me, nor that their simple rock cheer is all that annoying. First
of three eponymous albums (of nine albums through 2014), conventionally
color-coded (blue here; green in 2001 and red in 2008).
B

Weezer: Pinkerton (1996, Geffen): Second album, shows
considerable variety compared to the first album's pop-guitar thrash,
which isn't always for the better -- a couple of the early rockers are
tighter, and the closer is an acoustic ballad, an apologia.
B+(*)

Revised Grades

Sometimes further listening leads me to change an initial grade,
usually either because I move on to a real copy, or because someone
else's review or list makes me want to check it again:

Ornette Coleman: Beauty Is a Rare Thing: The Complete Atlantic
Recordings (1959-61 [1993], Rhino/Atlantic, 6CD): Two earlier
albums on Contemporary were limited by playing with more conventional
jazz musicians, but the young Quartet -- Don Cherry, Charlie Haden, and
Ed Blackwell -- is where he blew everyone's mind, a revolution that
was consciously reflected in the album titles: The Shape of Jazz to
Come, Change of the Century, and This Is Our Music.
Then came his fully improvised Double Quartet and their 37-minute jam,
Free Jazz. Atlantic went on to squeeze several more albums out
of the outtakes, and the box here shuffles them back into order. At
the time I wasn't sure that was a good idea, but over the years this
has become canonical, the place to start for, well, read those titles
again.
[was A-]: A